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BELLOWS FALLS -- The Cold River Ranters perform tonight at Popolo on The Square. The show starts at 8 p.m., with doors at 7:30. For those wishing to dine at Popolo first, just show a ticket receipt for 10 percent off food.
How to describe the Cold River Ranters? Their website calls their music "Hot Gonzo Primitive Folk Jive." Flying Under Radar’s Charlie Hunter says it reminds him of "A cross between the Holy Modal Rounders, The Asylum Street Spankers and Jonathan Richman if he lived in Acworth."
The Cold River Ranters combine an American-rootsy feel with dashes of third world seasonings. The melodies reflect various cultural traditions -- Appalachian, Irish, Celtic Brittany, African, even South Asian -- but the band’s original lyrics are one-of-a-kind.
At the Ranters’ core are Skillet Walker of Lempster, N.H., on steel resonator guitar and vocals; Jonathan Reinhart of Marlow, N.H., on mandolin and vocals; Tom Jawbone of Keene and Acworth, N.H., on banjo, flute, bagpipes, penny whistle, bones, jug, jaw harp and vocals; Nattie Carroll of Keene and Acworth on accordion and washboard. Marek Bennet makes deep thumping basslines using a 35-gallon steel drum with a banjo head and strings coming out.
Advance tickets are $10, available at Village Square Books and Popolo in Bellows Falls, or at brattleborotix.com. Best-in-house "Angel" tickets are available for $20 from
